Henry Wallace

organ

Henry Wallace was born and educated in Scotland. Briefly Assistant Organist at St.Giles’ Cathedral, Edinburgh, after leaving school, he won the Organ Scholarship to St.Catharine’s College, Cambridge University, where he studied Music. During his time directing them, the St.Catharine’s College Choir undertook their first tour abroad, to Italy, and made their first recording. While at Cambridge he studied organ with both Peter Hurford and David Sanger, and piano with Hilda Bor.

After graduating, Henry Wallace moved to Northumberland, initially working as a school music teacher, and as assistant organist at Hexham Abbey. He gained the Fellowship of the Royal College of Organists and won the 1985 Dunfermline Abbey Festival Organ Competition. Following this he published his first two solo organ recordings. The recording made on Hexham Abbey’s fine Phelps organ is devoted entirely to 19th and 20th Century French organ music. Over the years he conducted several local choirs in the north east of England, including the Hexham Abbey Festival Chorus, the Tynedale Elizabethan Singers, and the North Tyne and Redewater Choral Society. After a few years in teaching he embarked on a postgraduate degree in Computing Science at Newcastle University, during which time he was also the University Organ Scholar. Since then he has pursued a successful full-time career in the computer software industry, progressing from programmer to head of the Research and Development department at a Newcastle based business software development company. Meanwhile he has continued his work in musical fields as both conductor and organist.

After more than sixteen years as assistant organist at Hexham Abbey, the one post he held continually throughout his time in Northumberland, Henry Wallace moved back to Scotland. He is now living in Dunfermline, working as leader of the software engineering team for a small high-tech engineering company based in Alloa.

He was appointed Organist and Choirmaster at Greyfriars Kirk at the beginning of 2001.